


a song of gold

by herwhiteknight



Category: RWBY
Genre: F/F, Flirting, Romantic Fluff, yang's in a band!
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-20
Updated: 2020-02-20
Packaged: 2021-02-28 03:07:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,778
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22806802
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/herwhiteknight/pseuds/herwhiteknight
Summary: Blake, heiress to her family's fortune, is tired of fake people, false connections. She just wants to meet someone real for once.
Relationships: Blake Belladonna/Yang Xiao Long
Comments: 12
Kudos: 152





	a song of gold

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Siror](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Siror/gifts).



> I saw this piece of artwork by excelsiror on tumblr and I just couldn't stop staring at it 'cause it's fucking gorgeous, so I decided to fic it.
> 
> And, even though I've been on AO3 for several years now, I don't really know how to properly put fan art within my fic, so I shall just link you lovely people to their art on their blog here:
> 
> https://excelsiror.tumblr.com/post/189977476652/happy-new-year-grab-your-closest-soulmate-and
> 
> Please give them some love for their amazing work! :)
> 
> (and yes the name of the bar is a not-so-clever reference to their url XD)

Blake was _definitely_ not supposed to be at this concert. It was loud, overly crowded, sweaty and _entirely_ unbefitting of Blake’s status as the only heiress to her family’s wealth. A body slammed into her, a rowdy member of the crowd pushing his way back to the bar for yet another drink as the bands changed on stage.

Being surrounded by people who didn’t know her name, much less would even bother taking a single look at her face, was refreshing to say the least. It was a welcome break from the party that she had slipped away from. The one her father had hosted to gather all the eligible suitors within the region to find someone suitable for his dearest daughter Blake.

Blake lasted all of about an hour and a half before slipping out the back window.

She’d walked through the darkened streets, well aware of the fancy deep red cocktail dress she still wore, and the unwanted attention it was likely to bring her way unless she found someplace to slip inside and hide out for the rest of the night. 

_The Excelsior_ was proving to be the perfect bar for her disappearance. It was long, but narrow, dimly lit enough that Blake was reasonably reassured that she wouldn’t be recognized and the crowd, along with the decor, looked moderately high class enough that she didn’t feel like she stood out with her tight dress and flashy jewelry. A raised stage crammed near the front entrance further eased Blake’s concerns about being found as a band sauntered onstage and began to set up for their show.

She paid them no mind as she ordered a glass of red wine to help her relax. That is, until the voice of the lead singer broke through the crowd while they checked their mic. 

"Hey, check, sound levels, check," they called, and Blake turned, completely drawn by the voice of an alluring _woman_. 

Not that it was a shock that a woman could lead a band in general, but the more Blake looked around at the venue, the more she realized that there was a certain _punk_ edge to the decor, and certainly a woman wouldn’t lead a band with an aesthetic like _that._ Would she?

Apparently she would. “Hey, everyone! How are we all doin' tonight?” she called out as her bandmates behind her plucked and tapped at their various instruments - Blake noted someone at an electric piano, someone tuning a guitar, another thrumming low at a bass and, way in the back, someone else tucking a violin underneath their chin. The crowd crammed near the stage let out a couple of cheers in excitement. If Blake were to guess, she'd figure that the band was a local talent.

“That’s really good to hear!” the frontwoman exclaimed, jumping on the stage experimentally, a wild mane of golden hair braided intricately at the side tossing about in the halo of the stage lights. “If you don’t already know, we’re _The Gold_ and we’ve got a couple songs for you tonight!”

Blake watched as the lead singer strummed a chord that vibrated all the way down into her bones before glancing at her drummer and nodding and immediately launching into the song. " _Two, three, four -_ oh I wanted, oh I wanted - wanted to be! Wanted to be brighter, so I set myself _on fire_!" she sang, and her voice cut through Blake like crystal. The singer's entire soul came alive through her movements as she bounced and tossed her golden hair around, clearly having the time of her life.

And Blake was too. The music seeped through her skin and permeated her lungs and drove her cells to _move_. As they went through their short setlist, each song hit Blake harder than the last and she found that she couldn't contain the grin that spread across her face as she swayed and bobbed to the music as she leaned against the bar. 

"Thank you all so much folks!" she addressed the crowd, a slight pant to her voice from all her jumping around. "Once again, we are _The Gold_ , my name is Yang and on behalf of my bandmates, we hope you enjoyed your night!" The crowd cheered once more, a little more loudly from the adrenaline that the music provided, the sound building and building into a low roar.

Blake started yelling along with them, lifting a fist in rhythm as she started chanting, "Encore! Encore, encore, encore _encore-_!"

She wasn't sure what suddenly came over her to make her start screaming the word, but when Yang turned on stage to locate the source of the cheers and locked eyes with Blake, she found that she didn't care at all.

“Did someone out there ask for another song?” Yang asked, a cocky smirk unfurling across her lips as she played into the roar of the crowd. She cupped a hand around her ear and leaned in, eyes darting around the gathered crowd before settling back on Blake at the very back of the bar. “Alright,” Yang gave, clapping her hands together, “but only because you asked so nicely.”

Blake took a long sip from her wine as Yang’s gaze lingered for a moment longer before she turned her attention back to her band as they went about picking a song to play. _So, dad,_ Blake found herself idly thinking, _I found the perfect suitor for me, except it’s a suitress and she’s the lead singer for a rock band I found at a dive bar, you’ll love her._ She snorted into her glass as she rolled her eyes. _Yeah. He’d love that._

“Soo…,” Yang started, immediately drawing Blake’s attention once more. “My bandmates all wanted to play one of our newer songs that’s got a _groove_ to it, but! Because I’m the lead singer, I vetoed that completely, sorry guys!” Yang grinned mischievously and Blake couldn’t help but feel that she was up to something - though she couldn’t imagine _what_ that would even be. Besides, her friends behind her didn’t even really look the slightest bit put out, so it didn’t seem like there was any hard feelings. Two of them, a lanky guy who was basically just a set of abs with blonde scraggly hair and a shorter dark-haired girl with a ponytail long enough to make Blake just a little jealous seemed to have now noticed Blake at the bar and appeared to be giggling to themselves as they set up for the encore.

“This song’s a little older, but… I hope it strikes a chord in y’all anyways,” Yang carried on, tucking her pick between her pursed lips as she quickly tuned her guitar. “Because this song is pretty close to my heart. So, hope you guys like it!”

Yang nodded to her band again, and strummed out a few ethereal chords before leaning into the microphone, closing her eyes and transporting the whole space to somewhere else in time. “ _I know it’s warmer where you are,_ ” Yang sang as the bass kicked in, “ _and it’s safer by your side. But right now I can’t be what you want - just give it time._ ”

This song was a _plea_. A gentle, unselfish lament. It was personal. Desperate. A hope to meet, to connect, to reunite. Whoever Yang had written this song about, whoever she was waiting for, Blake found herself hoping - underneath a small twinge of disappointment - that whoever that person was, they’d realize just what they were missing.

The chorus crashed through her chest, leaving her with an ache she couldn’t quite place, a hollow shape that was filled with the lyrics that Yang was whispering straight into her soul, the ones that begged to wait, to wait for her, to wait until they could both meet in the middle - to wait to be together.

“Thank you again so much!” Yang grinned, a little more subdued despite the high-energy of the fading chorus. “Once again, we’re _The Gold_ and we hope we got you excited for _Maidens_ who are up next, give it up for them!” Yang clapped a couple times as she gestured to the side of the bar, “And we’ve got a merch table with a few shirts and a CD of our very first EP so come check that out if you’d like! Thank you so much and have a good night!”

Blake watched as Yang hopped off the side of the stage to put her guitar away before definitively setting her wine glass down and starting to make her way through the crowd to where Yang had indicated the merch booth was. People from all sides jostled her, either heading back towards the bar for a drink in between sets - but most of them seemed to be pressing towards the front to catch the main act. Blake wasn’t entirely sure why Yang’s band - _The Gold_ , Blake committed to memory - wasn’t the main attraction. Figured it didn’t matter much to reason out an explanation as long as she could see the woman again.

But when she finally got to the booth, she was nowhere in sight. The tall blonde and the shorter dark-haired - that Blake could now finally discern as a deep scarlet - girl who had been giggling on the stage were behind the table, however. The girl nudged an elbow into the blonde’s abs. “Hey there,” she grinned, dropping an elbow onto the table, and a chin into her palm.

“Hi,” Blake offered back, but she kept turning her head back every so often to catch a glimpse of the stage, hoping to catch a glimpse of gold. “Great set,” she added absently - despite meaning the compliment entirely.

“Oh, so you _are_ waiting for the _Maidens_ set, aren’t you?” 

Blake turned back to see the guy holding out his hand to the girl in the most indiscrete fashion possible. “Told you she wasn’t looking-” 

“Oh _please_ Sun,” she scoffed back, not even trying to hide. Something about the girl’s seemingly brash nature drew Blake in, but only enough to offer her curiosity something to hold onto. “Trust me, I know gay pining when I see it - even in a dark, crowded ass bar. You’ll be paying up soon enough.”

“C’mon, Ilia, let me have this one-”

“Guys, guys! Seriously, c’mon, what’s the hold up here? You’re going to drive away probably the only customer we’ll have tonight!” a voice called out from behind the table, barely picked out about the sound of the crowd and the crash of the drumset being adjusted to the new band. A taller figure squeezed through the remaining bodies and nearly stumbled her way behind the merch table, gold hair swinging wildly. Just like on stage.

“Oh, _hey_ Yang, we totally weren’t betting-”

“Speak for yourself,” Ilia smirked, pointedly sticking out her hand as Blake gaped at the lead singer up close.

“So you’re Yang?” Blake asked, pressing in close to the table, fingers ghosting against glossy CD sleeves that boasted artwork of a girl with golden hair sitting amongst green foliage and a crown of purple flowers around her head. 

“That’s me!” she chirruped, holding out her hand. Her voice was lighter than her singing voice had been - airy floating vowels as opposed to sifting gravel that dragged her consonants down deep into Blake’s veins. “And you are?” she continued as Blake took Yang’s hand tightly, holding onto the world in awe.

In the background, Ilia slipped a fresh bill into her back pocket with a smug grin as Sun slunk away with a grumble. 

“Blake,” she murmured, suddenly very aware that there was so much space between them. She lifted a CD off of the table, just to give herself something to do - something to say. “Is this yours?”

Yang hummed, slipping around the merch table fluidly, keeping her hold on Blake’s hand like an effortless tether. “Yeah,” she said, her breathless tone very evident in the sudden drop in volume - as if the universe has lulled itself into a brief quiet to respect the constellations singing a new song. “That’s me on the cover.”

“I couldn’t tell,” Blake said dryly, unable to resist the dig as she set the CD down. “Who _else_ in your band has a nearly unmanageable mane like that?”

“Hey!” Yang grumbled, dropping her hand in favour of taking a swat at her shoulder. Blake pushed into the touch, nudging her shoulder against Yang’s side and somehow just… staying there. “It’s manageable if you know how to handle it,” she said, low and quiet into Blake’s ear. The world started revolving again, cymbals crashing and the low thrum of a tuned bass hitting the air around them. But instead of following the rhythm the world was offering again, they sank under the gravity of their own melody.

“How to handle it?” Blake quirked her eyebrow, lifting her hand just slightly, fingers twitching in a question, skin burning with desire. 

“Yeah,” Yang gulped, visibly and Blake’s pulse matched the thrum of the bass around them. Wondered if Yang’s blood was still singing with the lyrics of her last song as much as Blake’s was. “Takes some special care… lots of attention… patience. I do these braids myself, I don’t let just _anybody_ touch these locks.”

Blake faltered, worried she got caught up in the moment, started drifting too far into romantic notions - that she would escape a party designed to find her a suitor, only to stumble headlong into love anyway. “I’m sorry, I-”

Yang grinned, lifted her hand up to Blake’s wrist, gentle and inviting. Guided her to thread her fingers within Yang’s golden hair. “But _you’re_ not just anyone, are you?” she asked.

Blake’s lips parted as she searched Yang’s eyes and saw nothing but answers in the lilac that danced beneath the lights of the stage. “So, you know who I am, then?”

Yang laughed, wrapping an arm around her waist and pulling her in close, dropping her lips to the curve of her jawline. “Darling,” she murmured, “this club is _fancy_ but it sure isn’t _this_ kind of fancy,” Yang pointed out, slipping her hand down the soft silk material of Blake’s dress and meeting her other arm in a loop low around the small of Blake’s back. “I am definitely _not_ complaining, however.”

“I’ll probably never hear the end of it from my father,” Blake slipped out absently in response, tilting her head back to allow Yang further access. Before immediately snapping back upright, smacking her chin against the side of Yang’s jaw.

“Ow, _shit_ -”

“ _My father,_ ” Blake gasped, mortified, heart racing in a different kind of way. Then, “Yang, I - oh my god, I’m so, so sorry, I didn’t mean-”

Yang leaned back, rubbing at her jaw ruefully even as she kept one hand at Blake’s waist, like she couldn’t bear to lose the contact for anything. “I’m okay, really. You just surprised me.”

Blake shook her head, frowning. “I’m so sorry, I just… I remembered - my father, he…”

“That big party tonight that you ran away from, right?”

“How did you-?”

“Saw a brief article in the news today. Belladonna’s a big name, and your father trying to marry off his only daughter to keep the legacy alive - well that’s got some people talking,” Yang explained simply. 

“I don’t care about all that,” Blake spoke thoughtlessly, emboldened by the magic that seemed to dance in air around them. “Any of it,” _it was rushing out of her lips now_ , “the money, that’s all they care about, I’ve met so many people, and my father he means well, he wants me to be happy too - but time’s running out, and there’s a choice I have to make soon-”

Boldly, brashly, maybe infected by the magic, a hint of madness dancing in her rogue expression, “So choose _me._ ”

Blake froze as her world exploded around her, then contained the moment within a chrysalis. This was the change that Blake had been waiting for. Right here. She teetered, a rough guitar chord shattering her conviction. “Not tonight,” she finally gave, arching desperately into Yang’s orbit, pressing into her. “Someday,” she whispered, kissing her cheek.

“Is that a promise?”

Blake licked her lips, shaking her head again. “ _This_ is a promise,” she said, tangling her fingers in Yang’s hair and pulling close, kissing her hotly for a long moment as the crowd cheered behind them, music crashing. It all went unheard by them both.

“Find me,” Blake murmured into her ear, just before pulling away. “Find me, and I’ll be yours.” Then she disappeared back out through the crowd, leaving Yang with eternity burning on her lips.

**Author's Note:**

> The two songs that Yang's band sings are "Come and Go" by Selfish Bodies and "You and I" by PVRIS. Please go give them a listen, especially the song by Selfish Bodies (and their other songs) bc that's my friend's band and I'd love it if y'all would be so kind as to support their work!


End file.
